Believe it or not LOL it was a "side effect" of the "Walmart fart in the intercom!!!"
It had to take absolute real guts to jump into one of those, no guns, no "buddies" and dive into the lion's den. Even with speed and altitude, "stuff happens"
I knew about some of the problems with the P38s which is why they were used extensively in the Japanese end of things--it was warmer
That is one thing Lindberg is credited with........they were having some accidents with Lightnings due to engine problems, and he went over and showed guys how to handle them with one engine failure
He also showed the pilots how to better manage fuel mixture and increase range, and went on some combat flights "unofficially"
My cousin was a Spitfire pilot. He landed wheels up in the Egyptian desert. He walked about 30 miles before the Italians captured him just before he would have been home free. He was at low altitude when he stalled the engine switching fuel tanks. He'd shot down this JU-52 a few minutes earlier.
View attachment 1715600071
Badass.
He was. After capture, he escaped, returned to combat, lost a second Spitfire, and escaped again. He was in service for the entire six year war, which ended before his 24th birthday. He had 6-1/3 aerial victories, but never spoke about them with me.
A life well lived, his obituary tells a bit of his war record.
Raymond SHERK - Obituary
Man that's awesome stuff!
From the obituary:
"Ray enjoyed high tea with the Queen of England, and a Heineken with Prince Bernard of the Netherlands in 1969."
I love that!